Snowpack above normal, looking good for rest of season

The statewide snowpack is above normal with typically heavy snows still to come during March and April.

The Natural Resources Conservation Service, an agency in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, says as of March 1, Colorado snow levels are 16 percent above normal. The state should be in good shape even if the next few weeks do not bring as much snow as usual.

“If the weather patterns persist, I expect we’ll keep a snowpack above normal. If it dries up, I still think we’ll probably reach our peak and have around a normal snowpack year,” Maggie Hultstrand, who works on the monthly snowpack survey, said.

An exception to the heavy snowpack statewide is in Southwest Colorado, where snow levels are still below normal.

“They just haven’t been getting the storm systems that the northern central mountains have been getting hit with. As far as the state, it’s kind of split right now,” Hultstrand said.

Southwest Colorado has had some snow in the past week. That will be reflected in the next snowpack survey in April.